July 12

Then those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God!” — Matt 14:33 BSB

What beauty and blessedness there is in the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ when seen through the eyes of faith! Our rational minds might struggle with the mystery of God becoming human. I know that my own mind has been deeply troubled by this great mystery of deity and humanity united in the person of Christ, for it surpasses human understanding and goes beyond the reach of our reasoning. It isn’t contrary to reason, for there’s nothing in it that is impossible or contradictory, but it is beyond the grasp of human thought. Yet, when we consider the consequences if Jesus were not both God and man, we are driven to cast ourselves entirely on an incarnate God, much like a shipwrecked sailor clings to a rock in the ocean as his only hope of survival.

When we realize what sinners we are, when we catch even a glimpse of the depth of the fall and see what sin is in the eyes of a holy God, what can save us from despair except the realization that Jesus Christ is both God and man? His deity gives his work on the cross the merit needed to justify our guilty souls, wash away our sins, blot out our transgressions, and make us fit to stand before a righteous God. In moments of great distress, we are often compelled to throw ourselves on the deity of Christ, seeing no other refuge for our souls.

If the deity of Christ were taken away, the Church would be lost. Without Christ’s divine nature, where could we find pardon, justification, or reconciliation with God? Where would we find atoning blood? If Christ were not both God and man, we might as well throw ourselves into the flames of hell with all our sins still on our heads. But by living faith, we hold fast to the deity of the Son of God, knowing that it is our only hope.

Sometimes we are sweetly drawn into this glorious truth, not merely driven by necessity, but led by the Holy Spirit. In these moments, when Christ is revealed to our soul, we see his deity shining through every thought, word, and act of his suffering humanity, filling them with unspeakable merit. We see how this union of deity and humanity in the person of Jesus Christ meets all our needs, takes away all our sins, heals all our wounds, and brings our soul to rest in God. Whether we are driven by guilt and temptation or sweetly drawn by the Holy Spirit, we hold fast to the hope we have in the divine and human Savior, knowing that in him we have refuge from sin, death, hell, and despair.